Pneumatic tire.



l. J. WEBSTER. PNEUMAHC TIRE. APPucATloN FILED AuGJa, |915.

I Patented Nov. 30, 1915.

Llegan.

' scribed of a simple and inexpensive con? .l STATES PATENT @FETCH PNEUMATIG TIRE.

Application led August 13, 1915.

To H /r-/ioml 'it v/i/rzj/ coince/rn:

Be it known that I, IRA' J. lvus'rmi, a citizen of the United btates. residing at IIaverhill. in the county of Essex and State .provision of a pneumatic tire offering a relatively high resistance to puncture and adapted to automatically operate to close or seal punctures.

Another object of the invention is the proi vision of a durable tire of the character destruction. I

Another obj ect of the invention is the prof vision of an eliicient pneumatic tire ot the character described which shall. be relat-i vel ylight in weight, and yet retain the qualities 0f resistance to puncture and the autolnatic closing of punetures as referred to.

Other objects will be in part obvious and in part pointed out hereinafter.

The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction, combimition of elements and arrangement of parts which will be exemplified infthe, construction hereinafter set forth, and the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the following claims.

In the accompanying drawings, wl'ierein similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the several views, Figure l\is a sectional view of a mandrel with the tire or tube formed thereon; Fig. 2 illustrates tbe'tire or tube when stripped from the mandrel, and after reversal; F ig. 3 illustrates the tire or tube after having been re versed and iniiated; Fig. 4 is a plan of a portion of the tire or tube partly broken away.

The tire forming the subject-matter of the present invention is so constructed that when in use a portion of the material composing the saine is placed under compression. Pneumatic tires are usually made of rubber. and when the same are. inllated',.por tions thereof usually assume a curved or Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 30, 19151 Serial No. 45,408.

arcuate form. If the material of the tire is unrestrained under the influence of the pressure of inflation it is placed in a'state of tension and it follows that such material when perforated under such condition has a tendency to separate at the punctured point. Thus the punctui'e has a tendency to cnlarge. By the present invention, however, a portion of the tire is placed under compression upon inflation and the compressed part not'only tends to resist puncture to a greater degree than a tire entirely under tension, but also the part under compression auto'- Inatically operates to close a puncture made therein.

Referringnow more particularlyv to the drawings, the numeral 1 indicates a tire or an inner tube which may form a part of a tire, as the case may be, of elastic material, rubber being preferred, and preferably also aportion of this tube is thickened as at 2, said thickened portion being disposedopposite the tread portion of the tire and also providing ample material for the copera tion of threads, hereinafter referred to, which threads are mainly employed for eiiciently yobtaining and retaining compression. In the form illustrated. in Fig. 4, the numorals 3 indicate a series of threads disposed transversely of the tire or tube opposite the tread and embedded in the rubber. These threads 3 are separate threads and are spaced apart longitudinally of the tire; z'. c. in a circumferential direction. lhese threads 3 hold the tread portion of the rubber tube or tire under compression when the tube is inflated. but on account of being spaced apart, the tube is capable of some longitudinal extension. The threads 3 are `j ined by a series of threads et, preferably extending longitudinally of the tube, these latter being designed to more or less'deinitely space they threads 3 from each other in the nfoeess of forming the tire. The threads 4 are also spaced from each other, but transversely of the tube so that the arrangement of the threads 3 and Je form substantially a net or open mesh structure. The strength of threads -lmay be relatively weak as compared with that of the threads 3, so that -in the. event of extension of the tube longitudinallv su'liicient to unduly tension the longitudinal threads 4., these latter may break at-one or more, points. It will thus be seen that the threads fi assist in locating Vthe tire compressing threads 3 at definite points around the longitudinal extent of the tire. Furthermore, should the threads 4: break, these broken threads with the threads 3 to which the broken section is connected, will form areas of associated transverse threads and longitudinal threads around the tire in a longitudinal direction, each area acting to retain compression transversely, but the longitudinal extensibility of one area may be independent of that of another. This feature of relatively independent longitudinal extensibility at different areas longitudinally around the tube is important for the reason that the rubber of the tube may vary in extensible qualities at diiierent points around the tire.

The threads 3 are preferably inelastic, such as would be provided by linen or cotton cord or twine, which. has some extensibility but is inelastic for practical purposes. Preferably a-lso the threads l are inelastic, although some features of the invention would be subserved by the employment of elastic threads 4. The threads, 3 are embedded in the rubber of the tire adjacent the edges, as at 6, 6 of the tread portion thereof, and they extend transversely of the tire opposite said tread portion, Vand preferably are also embedded in the tire opposite said tread portion, so that in the embodiment illustrated, said threads are embedded in the tire throughout their length and throughoutthe Width of the tread. The threads 3, 8, may be drawn through an adhesive substance before being placed in the tire, said substance serving to assist in retaining the threads in position. l

The ends of the threads B, 3 are preferably located adjacent the edges of the tread of the tire and are embedded in the rubber adjacent said edges, preferably somewhat deeper than are the intermediate portions, said intermediate portions lying nearerthe outer surface of the tire. In this Way thesetire compressing threads are securely retained opposite the tread portion and are buried in the -tread to such an extent as not to be exposed to wean By reason of the ends of the threads being longitudinally separated from the ends of adjacent threads, it follows that should sufficient Wear take place' to expose the ends ofcertain threads, any separation of suchy exposed ends from tlie rubber material of the tire would not affect the ends of adjacent threads. Hence, if the end of one thread were peeled from the tire, the peeling of adp jacent threads Would not necessarily follow.

his advantage Vis a' substantial one as the ,lasting qualities of the tire are more or less dependent thereon.

The tire or tube abovedescribed may be made' in any suitable manner which will effect the objects sought. In Fig. 1 is shown la cylindrical mandrel 7, on which the rubber 'Ftube or .twe maybe built up by successive layers or portions of rubber vulcanized to each other so as topresent a practically integral structure. After some thickness has been attained the threads referred to may be laid in position, whereupon additional layers of rubber are placed in position over the thread, theI tube being thus-thickened at the portion occupied by the thread, this thickened portion being designed to be opposite the tread portion of the'tire. The tube so made is stripped from the mandrel and turned inside out, whereupon it, when not inflated, may assume a shape such as shown in Fig. 2. It is then ready to be inflated, andwhen inated the transversely disposed threads cause the material or rubber of the tubetto be placed under compression on the inside as between the points 8 and 9, around the tire at the thickened portion. The amount of compression Will of course depend more or less upon the transverse curvature of the tire, but in any case, sufiicient compression may be obtained so that the compressed portion will resist puncture to a greater degree than -the uncompressed portion, and it will be clear that should a puncture occur in the compressed portion, the material thereof Will expand, thus automatically closing or. sealing the puncture. The plane occupied by the threads may be at any radial point in the thickness of the tire or tube, but is prefer. ably somewhat farther from-the inner than the outer surface, so as to provide on the inside ample volume of rubber to be compressed. On account of the fact that the tread of the tire has a tendency to Wearl more quickly adjacent the edges, the ends of the threads may be embedded somewhat deeper adjacent said edges as previously referred to.

Thus, by the above described construction are accomplished ampng others, the objects hereinbefore stated. f

As many changes could be made in the above construction and Vmany apparently Widely different embodiments of this invention could be made vwithout departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying' drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having described myl invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is p 1. In a pneumatic tire, in combination, a tread portion, a series of transversely disposed separate tire compressing threads embedded in the rubbereof the tire opposite said tread portion, and means comprising a thread extending transversely of said tire compressing threads adapted to restrain movement of said latter threads longitudinally of the tire. v

2. In a pneumatic tire, in combination, a

tread portion, a series of transversely disposed separate tire compressing threads embedded in the rubber of the tire ,opposite said thread portion, and means comprising a A- plurality of threads extending transversely of said tire compressing threads and joined thereto .adapted to restrain movement of said latter threads longitudinally of the tire.

3. ln a pneumatic tire, in combination, a tread portion', a series of transversely disposed separate tire compressing threads einbedded in the rubber of the tire opposite Y said tread portion and spacedv apart longitudinally of the tire, and means comprising a plurality of threads extending transversely of said tire compressing threads and joined thereto adapted to restrain movement of said latter threads longitudixally .of the tire.

et. In a pneumatic tire, in combination, a

threads connecting said vfirst mentioned? threads and extending' transversely thereof. In testimony whereof I aiiix mysignature, in the presence of tWo Witnesses.

IRAv J. WEBSTER. Witnesses:

ROBERT D. TRASK, ARTHUR H. GREEN. 

